The new high-speed railway line between Urumqi，capital of the Xinjiang Uygur self-governing region，and Lanzhou，capital of Gansu province，has cut train travel time by half to less than 12 hours．
The dramatic improvement will benefit many families planning reunions for Spring Festival．
“For the first time，I feel home is not that far away after all，”said Liang Shaofu as he boarded a high-speed train in Urumqi with six members of his family．
The 35-year-old left Lanzhou to set up a dry fruit business in Xinjiang eight years ago，and he has now settled in Urumqi．
The 1,776-km line，which passes through Qinghai province and is the country’s first high-speed railway to be built in a high-altitude region，came into service on Dec 26．
“We normally drive home for Spring Festival to avoid the difficulties of buying seven train tickets for the whole family during the peak season，”Liang said．“Driving can be very tiring and dangerous sometimes，so one year we even decided not to go back to Lanzhou simply to avoid the trip．”
More than 600，000 passengers traveled on the line during its first month，and the Urumqi Railway Bureau said the introduction of high-speed services will ease transport pressure during the Spring Festival peak season．
The existing usual railway line could no longer support Xinjiang’s development．All passenger trains will gradually shift to the new link，leaving the old one to be used for goods．As a result，Xinjiang’s annual goods ability could reach 200 million metric tons from the current 70 million．
The line passes through areas that experience high winds，and it also crosses parts of the deserted Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and the bone-dry sands of the Gobi Desert．
The project could help China to promote its high-speed railway technology abroad，said Ma Xi zhang，director of the Lanzhou-Xinjiang railway project’s_management department in Xinjiang.
How long did it take to go from Urumqi to Lanzhou by the usual train before?
| A．about 12 hours． | B．About 6 hours． |
| C．About 18 hours． | D．About 24 hours． |
What’s the main advantage of the new high-speed railway?
| A．It takes more time to go to Urumqi to Lanzhou． |
| B．It will be more convenient for people all over the country to Xinjiang． |
| C．All the people in Lanzhou can return home on festivals． |
| D．It helps to improve Xinjiang’s development． |
From the passage we can learn________.
| A．Xinjiang’s annual goods ability can increase nearly four times |
| B．the new railway technology may help more railway lines to be built abroad |
| C．the high-speed railway lines can’t be built across the bone-dry sands |
| D．the old railway lines can only carry goods now |
Which of the following is true according to the passage?
| A．The new high-speed railway line is good for all people to go home． |
| B．The new high-speed railway line benefits businessmen to carry goods． |
| C．Taking the new train is safer than driving home from Urumqi to Lanzhou． |
| D．Businessmen seldom went home for Spring Festival before． |
When I lived in Spain，some Spanish friends of mine decided to visit England by car，before they left，they asked me about how to find accommodation（住所）．I suggested that they should stay at “bed and breakfast” houses，because this kind of accommodation gives a foreign visitor a good chance to speak English with the family．My friends listened to my advice，but they came back with some funny stories．
“We didn't stay at bed and breakfast houses，”they said．“Because we found that most families were away on holiday．”
I thought this was strange．Finally I understood what had happened
My friends spoke little English，and they thought “VACANCIES” meant “holidays” because Spanish word for “holiday” is “vacaciones”．So they did not go to houses where the sign outside said “VACANCIES”，which in English meant there are free rooms．Then my friends went to houses where the sign said “NO VACANCIES”，because they thought this meant the people who owned the house were not away on holiday．But they found that these houses were all full．As a result，they stayed at hotels！
We laughed about this and about mistakes my friends made in reading other signs．In Spanish，a word very similar to “DIVERSION” means fun．In English it means that workman is repairing the road，and that you must take a different road when my friends saw the word “DIVERSION” on a road sign，they thought they were going to have fun．Instead， the road ended in a large hole．
English people have problems too when they learn foreign languages．Once in Paris，when someone offered me some more coffee，I said “Thank you” in French．I meant that I would like some more．However，to my surprise the coffee pot was taken away！ Later I found out that “Thank you” in French means “No，thank you”．My Spanish friends wanted advice about _________．
| A．learning English |
| B．finding places to stay in England |
| C．driving their car on English roads |
| D．going to England by car |
I suggested that they stay at bed and breakfast houses because ________.
| A．they would be able to practise their English |
| B．it would be much cheaper than staying in hotels |
| C．it would be convenient for them to have dinner |
| D．there would be no problem about finding accommodation |
“No vacancies” in English means ____．
| A．no free rooms | B．free rooms |
| C．not away on holiday | D．holidays |
I was surprised when the coffee pot was taken away because I _______．
| A．hadn't finished drinking my coffee |
| B．was expecting another cup of coffee |
| C．meant that I didn't want any more |
| D．was never misunderstood |
Many facts suggest that children are overweight and the situation is getting worse, according to the doctors. I feel there are a number of reasons for this.
Some people blame the fact that we are surrounded by shops selling unhealthy, fatty foods, such as fried chicken and ice cream, at low prices. This has turned out a whole generation of grown-ups who seldom cook a meal for themselves. If there were fewer of these restaurants, then probably children would buy less take-away food.
Others blame parents for allowing their children to become overweight. I agree with this, because good eating habits begin early in life, long before children start to visit fast food shops. If children are given fried chicken and chocolate rather than healthy food, or are always allowed to choose what they eat, they will go for sweet and salty foods every time, and this will carry on throughout their lives.
There is a third reason for this situation. Children these days take very little exercise. They do not walk to school. When they get home, they sit in front of the television or their computers and play computer games. Not only is this an unhealthy pastime(消遣), it also gives them time to eat more unhealthy food. What they need is to go outside and play active games or sports.
The above are the main reasons for this problem, and therefore we have to encourage young people to be more active, as well as steering them away from fast food shops and bad eating habits.According to the text, what kind of children may eat more unhealthy food?
| A．Those who often do sports. |
| B．Those who often watch television. |
| C．Those who often have meals at home. |
| D．Those who often walk to school. |
The author thinks that children are becoming overweight because ______.
| A．they can't choose what to eat |
| B．they are too busy to go out and play |
| C．their parents often cook meals for them |
| D．there are too many fast food shops around |
The word "steering" underlined in the last sentence most probably means ______.
| A．forcing | B．guiding | C．driving | D．moving |
The main purpose of the text is to ______.
| A．tell a story | B．provide facts |
| C．give advice | D．compare opinions |
Remembering names is an important social skill. Here are some ways to master it.
●Recite and repeat in conversation.
When you hear a person’s name, repeat it. Immediately say it to yourself several times without moving your lips. You could also repeat the name in a way that does not sound forced or artificial.
●Ask the other person to recite and repeat.
You can let other people help you remember their names. After you’ve been introduced to someone, ask that person to spell the name and pronounce it correctly for you. Most people will be pleased by the effort you’re making to learn their names.
●Admit you don’t know.
Admitting that you can’t remember someone’s name can actually make people relaxed. Most of them will feel sympathy if you say. “I’m working to remember names better. Yours is right on the tip of my tongue. What is it again?”
●Use associations.
Link each person you meet with one thing you find interesting or unusual. For example, you could make a mental note: “Vicki Cheng－tall, black hair.” To reinforce your associations, write them on a small card as soon as possible.
●Limit the number of new names you learn at one time.
When meeting a group of people, concentrate on remembering just two or three names. Free yourself from remembering every one. Few of the people in mass introductions expect you to remember their names. Another way is to limit yourself to learning first names. Last names can come later.
●Go early.
Consider going early to clubs, parties and classes. Sometime just a few people show up on time. There’re fewer names for you to remember. And as more people arrive, you can hear them being introduced to other an automatic review for you.If you can’t remember someone’s name, you may ________.
| A．tell him the truth |
| B．tell him a white lie |
| C．ask him for pity |
| D．ask others to help you |
When you meet a group of people, it is better to remember ________.
| A．all their games |
| B．a couple of names first |
| C．just their last names |
| D．as many names as possible |
What does the text mainly tell us?
| A．Tips on an important social skill. |
| B．Importance of attending parties. |
| C．How to make use of associations. |
| D．How to recite and repeat names. |
Everyone has got two personalities—the one that is shown to the world and the other that is secret and real. You don't show your secret personality when you're awake because you can control your behavior, but when you're asleep, your sleeping position shows the real you. In a normal night, of course, people frequently change their position. The important position is the one that you go to sleep in.
If you go to sleep on your back, you’re a very open person. You normally trust people and you’re easily influenced by fashion or new ideas. You don’t like to upset people, so you never express your real feelings. You’re quite shy and you aren’t very confident.
If you sleep on your stomach, you are a rather secretive (不坦率的) person. You worry a lot and you're always easily upset. You usually live for today not for tomorrow. This means that you enjoy having a good time.
If you sleep curled up (卷曲), you are probably a very nervous person. You have a low opinion of yourself and so you're often very careful. You're shy and you don't normally like meeting people. You prefer to be on your own. You're easily hurt.
If you sleep on your side, you have usually got a well-balanced personality. You know your strengths and weaknesses. You're usually careful. You have a confident personality. You sometimes feel anxious, but you don't often get depressed. You always say what you think even if it upsets people.According to the writer, you naturally show your secret and real personality_______.
| A．only in a normal night |
| B．only when you go to sleep |
| C．only when you refuse to show yourself to the world |
| D．only when you change sleeping position |
Point out which sentence is used to show the personality of a person who is used to sleeping on his or her stomach?
| A．He or she is careful not to make others angry. |
| B．He or she doesn't want to stick to his or her opinion. |
| C．He or she can't be successful in any business. |
| D．He or she likes to bring others happiness. |
Maybe you don't want to make friends with a person who sleeps curled up. Why?
| A．He or she would rather be alone than communicate with you. |
| B．He or she is rarely ready to help you. |
| C．He or she prefers staying at home to going out. |
| D．He or she wouldn't like to get help from you. |
It appears that the writer thinks highly of the person who sleeps on one side because _______.
| A．he or she always shows sympathy (同情) for people |
| B．he or she is confident, but not stubborn (固执的) |
| C．he or she has more strengths than weaknesses |
| D．he or she often considers upsetting people |
Cheating can happen in a lot of different ways. When people cheat, it’s not fair to other people, like the kids who studied for the test or who the true winners of a game were.
Many people like the action of cheating. It makes difficult things seem easy, like getting all the right answers on the test. But it doesn’t solve the problem of not knowing the material and it won’t help on the next test---unless the person cheats again.
People lose respect for cheaters and think less of them. The cheaters themselves may feel bad because they know they are not really earning that good grade. And, if they get caught cheating, they will be in trouble at school, and may be at home, too.
Some kids cheat because they’re busy or lazy and they want to get good grades without spending time studying. Other kids might feel like they can’t pass the test without cheating, even when there seems to be a good reason for cheating, cheating isn’t a good idea.
If you were sick or upset about something the night before the day and couldn’t study, it would be better to talk with the teacher about this. And if you don’t have enough time to study for a test because of swim practice, you need to talk with you parents about how to balance swimming and school.
A kid who thinks cheating is the only way to pass a test needs to talk with the teacher and his or her parents so they can find some solutions(解决办法) together. Talking about these problems and working them out will feel better than cheating.The author thinks that when kids cheat in class, ______.
| A．it is unfair to other people. | B．it does harm to their health. |
| C．teachers should punish them. | D．teachers shouldn’t stop them at once. |
Some students like cheating mainly because______.
| A．the material in the test is very difficult. |
| B．they want to do better than the others. |
| C．cheating can make hard things seem very easy. |
| D．they have little time to study their lessons. |
The fourth paragraph mainly tells us______.
| A．some kids can’t pass the test without cheating |
| B．why kids cheat in the test. |
| C．cheating isn’t a good idea. |
| D．some kids don’t spend the time studying. |
We can learn from the passage _______.
| A．cheaters are often thought highly of |
| B．people show no respect for those who cheat. |
| C．parents whose kids cheat are often in trouble. |
| D．kids cheat in the test because of swim practice. |